How to Bake a Pork Loin

Pork may be known as "the other white meat," but it doesn't usually top the list when we think of lean protein. We can probably thank bacon for that, but not all pork is dripping in fat and packed with sodium. Pork loin, for instance, is actually quite lean, low in fat, carbs and calories. Learning how to bake a pork loin can add a nice punch of variety and flavor to your diet whether you're watching your weight, trying to eat more healthfully or just looking for interesting new options for your usual dinner rotation.
This recipe for "Apple Saucy Pork Roast" brings out pork's natural sweetness with its use of apples, cloves, brown sugar and lemon. Even the most finicky palate will find its unexpected combination of flavors pleasing.

Hey, everyone. I'm Judith with Recipe.com. And today I'm going
to be showing you how to make an apple saucy
pork roast, a really delicious, flavorful apple to go with
our pork. So what you're gonna need is a 4
pound boneless pork loin roast which is tied right here.
We have a 1/4 cup of brown sugar, a 1/4
cup of apple juice, we have 3 medium size apples
which we've cored and cut into wedges, we have 2
tablespoons of lemon juice, we have 2 teaspoons of mustard,
we have 3 cloves of garlic which we've thinly sliced,
we have a 1/4 teaspoon of black pepper, 1 teaspoon
of fresh rosemary which we've chopped, and 1 teaspoon of
salt. Now, first thing's first. We're gonna get our pork
loin right here and what we wanna do is we're
gonna get cut slits into the loin. So we we're
going to do about 4 slits and let's just get
our fork and knife to help us. About 1/2 inch
lengthways and about an inch deep. So we can just
do that. That's perfect. So we've got one there, one
there. There you go, and that's gonna keep our pork
loin nice and moist. So once we have those slits
in there, we're going to actually fill those slits with
our garlic. So get your thin garlic slices. Now if
you need to make those holes a little bit bigger,
depending on how big your garlic is, you can do
that. There we go. And let's put together now our
lovely seasoning to put on top of that. So just
combine your salt, pepper and rosemary. And that is just
gonna go on on top of our pork as a
seasoning. So we can just rub that on there like
so. Get the sides in there, too. It's gonna make
it nice and flavorful. Wonderful. Now, that's gonna go on
our roasting rack. We've preheated the oven to 325 degrees
Fahrenheit, and that is gonna just cook in our oven
now for about 1-1/2 to 1-3/4 hours. We'll take it
out and we'll get in our apples in there after.
Okay. So we've taken our pork roast out of the
oven. We've transferred it from the rack onto the base
of the roasting pan. That was in there for about
an hour and a half, an hour and 3/4, looking
and smelling fabulous. So, now it's time to mix together
our apple mixture. So let's just put in our apple
wedges in there, our brown sugar, our lemon juice is
gonna go in there. Our juices in there, too. And
our mustard. Now, that is just gonna give a really
sweet taste to our pork. Apples and pork, just delicious
together. So we'll stir all that in together. Now, we've
drained off any excess fat from the bottom of our
roasting pan. And all we do now is we'll just
spoon our apple mixture around our roast like so. So
we wanna get those apples nice and soft, nice and
tender. And it's just gonna go delicious with our pork
roast. And even spoon a little bit of that lovely
juice on top and around. Lovely, lovely, lovely. Okay. So
that now is ready to go back in the oven
for another 30 minutes uncovered. So we've taken our pork
roast out of the oven. We've transferred it onto a
platter. It was in there for another 30-45 minutes with
our apples and as you can see, our apples have
turned a lovely golden brown. They've caramelized beautifully with that
brown sugar, and that is just gonna be a heavenly
taste with our garlic infused, rosemary infused pork roast. So
now that's ready to serve, you can slice that up
and it should about 10 people and that's perfect. That
is your apple saucy pork roast. Well, thanks for watching,
everyone. For more great recipes and savings, go to Recipe.com.

What You'll Need

1 3 1/2 - 4 pound boneless pork top loin roast (double loin, tied)

3 cloves garlic, cut into thin slices

1 teaspoon coarse salt or regular salt

1 teaspoon dried rosemary, crushed

1/2 teaspoon coarsely ground pepper

3 medium apples, cored and cut into wedges (about 3 cups)

1/4 cup packed brown sugar

1/4 cup apple juice

2 tablespoons lemon juice

2 teaspoons dry mustard

Step By Step

1

Preheat over to 325 degree F. Cut small slits (about 1/2 inch long and 1 inch deep) in pork roast; insert a piece of garlic in each slit. Combine salt, rosemary, and pepper; rub onto meat surface. Place roast on a rack in a shallow roasting pan. Insert a meat thermometer. Roast, uncovered, for 1-1/2 to 1-3/4 hours or until the meat thermometer reaches 145 degree F. Spoon off any grease from roasting pan.

Transfer meat to a platter. Cover and let meat stand for 10 minutes before slicing. (The meat temperature will rise 5 degree F during standing.) Remove the rack from the pan. Stir apple wedges into pan juices. If desired, use a slotted spoon to remove apple wedges, and pass juices. Makes 10 to 12 servings.

Your guests will savor this fruity take on how to cook a pork loin. Pair it with fresh steamed zucchini, summer squash, green beans or other vegetable for a well-rounded and tasty low-calorie, low-carb and low-fat meal.